


heavy weight on thin shoulders

by Griffin Raynor (TheEbonHawk)



Category: RWBY
Genre: Boundary Negotiation, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Ozqrow Week, Stress, physical affection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-22
Updated: 2017-02-22
Packaged: 2018-09-26 05:20:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9864704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheEbonHawk/pseuds/Griffin%20Raynor
Summary: Qrow wants to provide Oz some much needed distraction from work, but Oz is somewhat resistant.-This is unedited due to reasons; I'll try to edit it later. Please leave a comment or review!





	

Ozpin pushed Qrow away, scowling as he always did when his lover tried to interrupt his work by showering him with attention. 

Qrow laughed at him, sitting up straight on Ozpin's desk, crowded with papers and folders. “You know that face is adorable, right?”

Ozpin looked up at him with a blank glare.

Qrow rolled his eyes. “Come on, Oz. Please just take a break. You’ve been at it for ages.”

“And you want me to have sex with you instead, I presume.”

Qrow smirked. “Yeah, that too.” He leaned in to give his lover another kiss.

Instead of allowing it, or merely pushing him away again, Oz stood up in a flash, hands slamming down on the covered desk, eyes blazing into Qrow’s with a fury. “Stop it! I swear to the goddess above, you are the most infuriatingly impatient man I’ve had the misfortune to meet. My work is important, Qrow, and just because I’ve got a million things to do besides run a school doesn’t mean I can neglect the children counting on me for even a second!”

Qrow had frozen, hands up in surrender, his expression surprised. Ozpin was usually a man of cool anger, not outbursts like this. He nodded quickly, trying to prove he understood so that Oz would calm down. “I know, sweetheart, I know. I would never say your work isn’t important, or that you should give up on it. I just think you need to learn to take a break sometimes.”

He reached out and touched his lover’s chin gently, smiling at him. “Hey. I admire you for working so hard. I really do.”

Ozpin stared up into Qrow’s eyes for a moment, seeming to consider his words. Then he frowned. He grabbed the hand on his chin and pulled it away, giving another withering look to its owner. “You need to learn boundaries. You need to learn when to leave me alone, when it’s not wise to push me.” His eyes burned, they grew in fire, and then - no, they were filling. He was beginning to cry. 

His angry expression crumbled, and Oz fell back into his seat, his hands covering his face. He quickly wiped away the tears, but his defeated posture remained.

It wrent Qrow’s heart with empathy and guilt. “Oh, sweetheart,” he sighed, placing a tentative hand on Ozpin’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Oz. You’re right, I need to learn to mind my own business and give you space.”

Oz shook his head. “No. I mean yes, but I’m sorry that I yelled at you, Qrow. It’s just stress. One would think I’d have learnt to deal with it. 

Qrow sighed again and stood up by Ozpin’s side, embracing him. “No one expects that. You’ve every right to be stressed.”

“I can't afford to be. It's my job to remain calm and maintain as much control as I can.”

Qrow bit lightly at his lip as he thought. Often, when he most wanted to comfort Oz, he had no idea how. He was a simple, young man caught up in the wizard's world.

But if there was one thing he was good at, one redeeming feature to his hot personality, it was that he was good at taking care of his loved ones.

He massaged Ozpin’s shoulder gently with his arm wrapped around him. “ You're right, you have a lot of responsibility. But that doesn't mean you have to give up your humanity for it.” He paused, thinking of how to word this in a way Oz would accept. “You don’t have to be perfect, even if it might seem that way sometimes. Everything won’t fall apart if you make a mistake. We’ve seen mistakes and failure before, and we’re still here.”

At this, Ozpin closed his eyes tightly, frowning and bowing his head again. He took every fall hard.

Qrow sighed lightly. “If you try to force yourself to always hold it together, Oz, you’ll fall apart much faster.”

Oz didn’t say anything, but he leaned on Qrow’s shoulder and slid an arm around his waist, falling into the hug. 

Qrow smiled softly and kissed his hair. “From now on, I want you to tell me straight when you need space or when I’m stressing you out, and I’ll back off. I want to help you, not make things worse.” He frowned, guilt still nagging him. As good as he was at caring, making things worse was the ever-present, underlying risk. 

But Oz shifted in the chair and pushed himself up, kissing Qrow on the cheek. “Thank you,” he murmured.

Qrow smiled.


End file.
